


Moving Away

by gurajiorasu



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-17
Updated: 2015-08-17
Packaged: 2018-04-15 05:56:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4595475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gurajiorasu/pseuds/gurajiorasu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Masaki lied! Masaki is going to leave me! I don’t want to be aloooonnee..”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Moving Away

**Author's Note:**

> In the same AU as [Stupid Pinwheel](http://archiveofourown.org/works/2532422), set two years after (Both of them stand alone though).

Nino didn’t really remember how he got there, or when. He didn’t even know where he was exactly. He only knew that he was really, _really_ upset to his parents that he stomped his little pair of feet through the woods around their neighborhood. His parents had prohibited him to enter that particular woods, but he was mad and he thought it was just appropriate for him to take a refuge there out of all places.

Just so they know, he thought.

But he really didn’t count on getting lost inside the scary woods. He had walked for what it seemed to be his entire nap time and yet he was getting nowhere. He was mad, he didn’t know where to go, and he was all alone.

Nino plopped on a big rock by a tiny river and hugged his knees close. He wanted to cry out for his mom, really, but he remembered what she had said earlier and the poisonous anger took over him again. He wanted to call out for his dad, too, but his dad had only laughed when he threw a tantrum over his mom so he was no better either.

He wanted to call out for Aiba, but his eight-year-old ego didn’t allow him to.

Nino resorted in forming a human ball and hiding his face between his knees. He stayed there for a good thirty minutes, not doing anything but waiting. He wasn’t really aware that he was waiting and he didn’t really know what he was waiting for, but when he heard footsteps and labored breathings, his heart unclenched and his mind vaguely thought something similar to the word _finally_.

“Nino,” the familiar voice called. There’s a huge relief in those two syllables.

“Go away,” Nino said, not even looking up to Aiba. He would freak out if Aiba really did go away, but he knew Aiba wouldn’t do that because that’s just how it was between them. Always.

“Nino, let’s go home?” Aiba tried to peel Nino’s arm from covering his head, “Come on, it’s getting dark.”

“No,” Nino swatted Aiba’s hand away.

“Okaa san was searching for you,” Aiba sat next to Nino and lowered his head until it almost bumped to Nino’s.

Okaa san. Aiba was talking about Nino’s mom.

“I don’t care,” Nino barked. He was upset. Really, really upset. And Aiba was supposed to be on his side. It’s them against the world, wasn’t it?

“Nino,” Aiba whined a bit, “What’s the matter? Let’s go home. If not to yours then to mine. Kaa chan was frying karaage, I’ll give you my share. Let’s go home, okay? It’s getting dark.”

Nino let out an upset whine. Then, he remembered why he was upset on the first place and it was mainly because of Aiba. His mom had told him earlier that the Aibas were about to move out. Away. Far away. And when he demanded his parents to stop them, his mom had said no. When he said that they should move too, then, they had laughed at him.

Nino finally revealed his head from where he hid it. He was about to start a fight with Aiba when a loud rustling sound was heard from nearby.

Nino flinched. Aiba did too. They looked around and Nino just realized how dark it was already. It was most definitely past their dinner time. He shuddered as the rustling voice came again and Aiba grabbed his hand immediately.

“Let’s go home,” Aiba whispered.

Nino set his anger aside in favor of being frightened and nodded once. He remembered a story that his mom and Aiba’s mom had told them a long time ago, about a monster living in that exact woods that liked to lurk around at nights. They used to avoid the woods when they were kindergarteners, opting to take rounding paths rather than passing its entrance. They slowly forgot the story once they entered elementary school. But, being in the middle of it, with unknown voices around them, it’s hard not to remember it.

“Hold my hand,” Aiba’s voice was laced with panic. He tugged on Nino’s hand and started to face the woods. His eyes darted around for a while, trying to remember the path that he had used to walk in. He tried so hard to remember it but he had walked around in search for Nino for about three hours that it was almost impossible to remember anything.

The rustling sound came again and Nino whimpered, “Masaki..”

Aiba turned and he found Nino shaking on his feet. Nino would never admit it but Aiba knew Nino was really afraid. Nino’s sister could be really cruel when it came to frightening her brother with ghost stories and Aiba bet she had used that woods once or twice in her stories. So Aiba toughened himself up, smiled, and said, “This way.”

Then, they ran. They ran and ran as fast as their growing legs allowed them to. They ran until they’re running out of breaths. They ran until it was completely dark and they didn’t stop until Nino was tripped on a protruding root.

“Masaki!” Nino yelped, “Don’t leave me.”

Aiba scrambled back to where Nino fell and stretched his arm to help Nino back to his feet, “No, no. I won’t leave you. Come on.”

And it hit Nino in more ways than it was intended to. He grabbed Aiba’s hand tighter this time and he let Aiba drag him out of the woods. He didn’t care about the monster anymore. His mind went back to the fact that Aiba was leaving him. Not just leaving him to get out of the woods, but leaving him as in moving away with his family to God-knows-where.

It’s not fair, was it? Aiba was suddenly going to move away and leave Nino alone. That’s not the deal, Nino was really sure. It was supposed to be Aiba and Nino doing silly things. Aiba and Nino playing baseball. Aiba and Nino getting yelled at for pulling pranks on naughty classmates.

If Aiba moved away, then what would Nino be? What’s the fun in doing those things if he was about to do it alone? Without Aiba?

Before Nino knew it, they’re already on Aiba’s house. Aiba’s pace didn’t get slower until both of them were inside the house and safe. Nino’s mom was there, lounging around the kitchen while Aiba’s mom was cooking something that smelled spicy.

Mapo tofu.

“Let’s not go there again, okay?” Aiba said in between his pants. He rarely scolded Nino, but that time, he felt like he had to, “What would you do if I wasn’t there?”

It toppled Nino’s defense, really. His eight-year-ego wasn’t that big yet; when he couldn’t handle it, he couldn’t. When he’s sad, he’s sad. When he didn’t want something to happen, he threw a tantrum. When he was on the edge, he cried.

And that time, he cried hard.

It’s faster than any racing car; how Nino turned from quiet to a super power wailing boom box. His face turned red. His tears were everywhere. His snot was coming out. Then, he went to the safest place on the earth; his mom’s embrace.

Nino’s mom rubbed Nino’s back immediately as her son buried his face on her belly. Aiba’s mom stopped cooking and wiped his hands clean before approaching Nino and his mom.

Aiba beat his mom, though. He dashed after Nino with panic written all over his face. He tried to peek through Nino’s mom’s embrace and checked Nino all over, “Nino, what’s wrong? Are you hurt? Is there any wound? Is it because you fell?”

Nino’s mom only chuckled softly when she saw Aiba knelt down to check on Nino’s legs.

Aiba’s mom looked more worried. She threw a concerned look to Nino’s mom and only got a shake of Nino’s mom’s head as response.

Then, Nino’s mom started to talk, “Kazu, don’t you want to tell us what makes you sad? It’s not because you’re hurt or afraid, isn’t it?”

Nino shook his head. Both Aiba and his mom stared in confusion.

“Then, what’s the matter? What makes you run to the woods?”

Nino only shook his head again and cried even louder. He pressed his face to his mom’s clothes until it was damp and his cry was muffled.

“Kazu, come on, baby, tell us,” Nino’s mom coaxed.

Nino didn’t seem to budge. Then, Aiba stepped forward and touched his arm, “Ninomi..”

That did the trick. Nino pulled his arm away from Aiba and he started to scream, “Masaki lied! Masaki is going to leave me! I don’t want to be aloooonnee..”

“I won’t leave you,” Aiba said right away. He decided to sit on the floor next to Nino’s mom. He stubbornly gripped Nino’s arm.

“Liar! Kaa san said you’ll move away!” Nino hugged his mom tight.

Aiba’s mom furrowed his brows and Nino’s mom hid her laughter behind her elbow. Nino’s mom put a finger over her lips and Aiba’s mom knew that she was up to no good.

Nino’s mom used her sweet tone when she asked, “And it makes you sad?”

Nino didn’t answer immediately. It seemed that he was thinking. Then, he stomped his feet, “Masaki still owes me mangas! He promised that he’ll watch next baseball match with me! He said he’ll play the new game with me!”

“I will!” Aiba protested because he was panicked and he felt like he was being accused.

“But you’ll move away!”

“But I still will!” Aiba insisted and it started to sound like a quarrel.

Nino peeled himself off of his mom’s embrace and faced Aiba. His face was a mess when he yelled, “No! If you move away then you’ll be like Tanaka from class B!”

“I will not!” Aiba stood up so he was at the same level as Nino. His face was getting red and his eyes were getting glassy too.

“That’s what he said to his friends too!”

“But we will only move to next door!” Aiba screamed.

Nino blinked. He looked into Aiba’s eyes and found no trace of lie or joke. He looked to Aiba’s mom, she smiled apologetically. Then, he looked at his own mom.

Nino’s mom was laughing. Hard. Behind her elbow.

Nino was fooled. By his own dear mother. He should have known better.

Nino felt his face getting hot and he was sure that it was as red as tomato. Embarrassment filled his being bit by bit and he couldn’t bring himself to look at Aiba again. He stomped his little feet - just like what he did earlier that day - and screamed, “OKAA SAN, YOU’RE THE WORST!”

Nino’s mom only looked at her son’s back while laughing more hysterically. Instead of chasing Nino, she shouted, “Are you sure you want to leave your dearest Masaki now?”

The door was just closed behind Nino’s back when he heard his mom shouted. There were three-seconds silence in which Aiba began to think that he should chase Nino himself before the younger went somewhere dangerous again.

But then, the door was opened again. Nino rushed in with red and tear-streaked face. He snatched Aiba’s arm and dragged him out, murmuring things like ‘you owe me something’ and ‘I hate Okaa san’.

That night, it took three hours of coaxing from his mom before Nino unlocked his room’s door and allowed Aiba to go home.

 

*  
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“How’s Kazu kun?” Aiba’s mom asked that night. They were already on their futon. It was far past Aiba’s sleep time, but his mom let it slip for that once. If anyone was at fault, it’s Ninomiya Kazuko.

“Still upset to Okaa san,” Aiba snuggled to his mom, “Not to me anymore, though.”

His mom smiled, “Good, then.”

Aiba nodded. He always hated it when Nino was upset to him. He could stand Nino’s prank, but not his anger. Never.

Then, after a while of pondering, Aiba’s mom asked, “Was he really in the woods?”

“He was,” Aiba nodded again, “I searched for him for a loooooooooooooooooong time. Fortunately, I found him.”

“I thought you’re afraid of the woods.”

Aiba thought a bit and admitted shyly, “I am. It’s scary. We heard voices when we were about to go home. Therefore we ran.”

“Really? Did you cry?”

“No,” Aiba grinned.

“Why? You said it’s scary.”

“Because Ninomi was frightened. I have to protect him so I must not cry, right?” Aiba sounded so proud of himself.

Aiba’s mom chuckled, “Oh my, my son has grown up, hasn’t he?”

Aiba grinned even wider. Then, he said with all the sincerity that his nine-year-old self had, “I have to grow up well so I can keep protecting Ninomi.”

“Oh yeah? For how long do you plan to protect your Ninomi, hm?”

Aiba didn’t even have an ounce of hesitation when he answered, “Forever.”  



End file.
